Thursday, March 15, 2007

Introducing the new Squirrel's Vegan Kitchen! Let me know what you think, there are going to be lots of changes and it will be growing by leaps and bounds in the next few weeks. This site will soon be directly redirecting to the new one.

Sunday, March 04, 2007

I feel bad that I haven't been posting, but I feel like a complete jerk because I haven't been commenting on everyone else's yummy creations! I'm so sorry, but things will be straightening out soon and I look forward to being less of a lurker and seeing what you all have been up to.

I haven't been around much lately because the final bits and pieces of my cookbook, The Damn Tasty Vegan Baking Guide, are coming together! It's very, very exciting but it's also very busy and stressful. We're dealing with the layout and some design issues right now, but it's going to be going to press next month and will done by the end of April or the very beginning of May! I am lucky enough to be working with some amazing friends and family that are pitching in to pull this all together, between editing, designing, layout, etc, I have so much support right now that it's very humbling and I am incredibly grateful.

With all the new stuff coming up, this blog will be getting a beautiful face-lift, which will hopefully be debuting this week, so keep a look out. I'm excited to see what you think.

Okay, so now onto the food-related news! Remember several months ago, me talking about the slow death of our fridge and oven? Well, we held out as long as we could, but we had to finally break down and buy some new appliances. Wow, did we ever feel like grown-ups, it was surreal!

Our shiny new fridge! So big! I have a considerable amount of freezer space now. And it's an energy saver!

And our oven. I pouted a little about oven buying, because we have electric and I really prefer cooking with gas, so I was able to cheer myself up a bit by getting an oven with a warming drawer. It's really nifty! And the price was good. Viva vegan appliances!

Pea soup last week, with some EB smothered wheat rolls. I was able to whip it up, from dried peas to completely-obliterated-peas in 12 minutes with the pressure cooker.

Brunch this morning- Cinnamon raisin French ("Fronch") toast with tempeh and white bean patties from VwaV and Kate's yummy hash browns (that she actually got to brown, unlike the sad potato piles I usually make). Jim and I agreed that maple syrup wouldn't be considered sugar if it is used in moderation and if he dips, rather than pours.

And on the side, some fruit salad, made up of apples, kiwi, pineapple, bananas, and a hint of lime juice. Served with the Macadamia Cream Sauce (which has a minor amount of sugar in it, but I figured that in having a tablespoon of the whole batch, it was excusable).

This really cool pilaf that I picked up at (where else?) Trader Joe's. It has little pasta balls, red quinoa, red lentils, multiple orzo pastas and baby garbanzo beans in it. Cooked up with just water and nothing else, it is delicious. Yum!

A simple potato, sweet potato, garbanzo, carrot, kale stew served over quinoa. I made a huge batch that made lunches for us for several days.

And for our other news...

Hazel! We adopted a hamster last weekend from this great rescue that is run by the nicest husband and wife. They rescue the "cheap" animals that most people overlook the fates of, like hamsters and beta fish. They recently took on two huge groups of hamsters, Syrian and Dwarf, and Jim and I came across them and decided we wanted to step in and help another hamster in need. Little Hazel is only 4 months old and she's full of spunk. On the first day she came to live with us, she crawled in Jim's sleeve and explored the inside of his shirt. The look of panic on his face while he sat there really still was priceless. She's very sweet and likes to be touched and interacted with, so we're having a fun time getting to know each other. I'm so grateful to that shelter for the work they are doing, helping out the little guys who are so easily overlooked.

That's it for now! The no-sugar campaign is going strong, with the minor amount we had in macadamia cream we had today. I'm not even really missing it, although I can't WAIT to bake in my new oven! But good things come to those who wait, right?